


how i wanted to be that sky — to hold every flying & falling at once.

by GStK



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Gender-Neutral My Unit | Byleth, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-13
Updated: 2019-10-13
Packaged: 2020-12-14 09:44:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 600
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21013733
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GStK/pseuds/GStK
Summary: dusk: a blade of honey between our shadows, draining.





	how i wanted to be that sky — to hold every flying & falling at once.

**Author's Note:**

> Second person PoV. Set post-Crimson Flower with no real spoilers.  
Dog

life after the war is harsh, cold.

her fur is soft and warm.

you bury your face in her gentleness as soon as you get the chance. your husband chuckles at you, beginning the timely process of untying his ceremonial pauldrons. the winters of faerghus are deceptively cutting. sylvain whispers something soft to you, a ticklish voice in your ear. you don’t answer, pushing further against your ever-companion.

your touch is too harsh for her; she rolls up from her sprawled position and begins to stick her nose into the crown of your head, your hair. when _ her _ muzzle chances close to your ears, you give an involuntary laugh, one sylvain echoes in the fond smile on his face. _ i’ll leave you to it_, he says, or a little ditty like that. your attention belongs to her. she is a god and you are her worshiper.

she tilts her head just _ so _when you manage to scratch her ear in the right place, whacking her tail across the silk sheets of your bed.

children, you will never have — hero, you can never truly be. but lover? devoted supplicant? this, you can do. she’s a whimsical old lady, seven years and going, and you’ll never forget that first day in the monastery when you found her, yellow fur spackled by the sun. she was a troublemaker who chased the cats around and ate scraps annette fed her under the benches in the dining hall. she was a dazzling thing without a name, monster to some, but to you —

— when she strode out with you onto the field for your practice battle, an anomaly.

when she joined you at your side during those hard nights after your father, when you learned what tears felt like and sothis didn’t have anything to say, she was a friend.

and when you pitched deep into the long dark and fell upside down again into the world, five years later, she was amidst the rubble of your former home, she was sniffing edelgard’s fingers while they waited for you and she was yours.

her tail thumps a beat against the side of the mattress when you get up, carting your hair over the side of your neck and laying with her side-to-side, face-to-face. you extend your arm out and she sets her chin on your forearm. you remember how aghast sothis had been when you considered her name for this bundle of flax and joy. bernadetta, too — petra, quiet interest; felix, a scowl. hanneman made the observation that you were not very creative with your naming process, and he was right.

“byleth,” sylvain calls from outside of sanctuary, “i’ve got dinner.” you don’t answer. you roll her ears between your fingers. the audible pause is broken by, “nosewise!”

true to her nature, your faithful companion betrays you utterly and goes rushing for her second admirer. not master, just… friend.

sylvain grins and threads his fingers through your messy hair when nosewise’s pull inevitably summons you. he puts his head against yours, and you look at him once, and then you glance away to the one who truly holds your heart.

“you really like dogs,” sylvain observes, not for the first time. you give a nod of your head and he kisses your temple, holding you against him, holding you by the waist. “yeah. so do i.”

nosewise does not join the group hug. she is far too busy chowing down on her own meal. there’s an aroma wafting around you, the pleasant indulgence of a place called home sticking to your skin.

you really like dogs.

**Author's Note:**

> Title and summary adapted from works by Ocean Vuong.


End file.
